We left with the orphans to meet their American Dad when we received the call that he was in country. He gave us specific directions of where to meet him. The children did not know anything more than they were going to another orphanage. They packed all their things, and were quite excited about getting to go for a ride. A ride that would change their lives completely.
We pulled into the walled compound, and then we saw Richard Pickett. The kids sat there stunned. No reaction and then it broke as they got out and hugged their dad. They knew him. He has been back and forth to Haiti many times, trying to get this adoption through. FIVE YEARS IN FACT. Today they will go to the American Embassy and get their visas. Richard has done his homework on this thing and has a contact very high up and expects to walk in get the visas and go. The youngest one should be able to go on the family visa because there is a law that if one in the family gets adopted the others can ride on their approval. We are praying that nothing goes wrong with that.
We saw Pastor Cesar, gave him supplies, met with he and church committee as to how they want this church restructured. Everyone is so afraid of blocks now, so we are going to put up half wall of blocks and wood the rest of the way up, tin roof, cement the floor. This will make a nice place for people to live until they can get a house. He will have a better building than he did before. His wife was in school (nurses training) and toward the end of the class, she heard, "get out!" She grabbed her things and left. Ten minutes later the school was down on the ground. All in all, Pastor Cesar has 20 church members who lost their homes, no one lost their life. He was having church when the quake hit, everything came down on their heads, no one hurt. Pastor Cesar is a wonderful Christian, rides a tap tap every Saturday, many miles to come to Bible school and since he's got a diploma from a seminary already, we let him start his own IAM Bible school. He has 60 students, and actually was having Bible school when the quake hit.
We also met with Eddy yesterday to give him some money. Eddy did all our Haitian business and sometimes we wondered if he was giving us the business. But, be that as it may, he eventually got the papers we needed to carry on here. His house is not down but tipped over. He was napping when the quake hit, everyone in the house got out. All his relatives are safe but their homes are gone and all of them are with him living in his yard, twenty in number. He had an offer by another missionary to come there and live, but he and his wife did not want to leave ailing parents. He was a broken man and not the confident Eddy we'd always encountered in our dealings with him. He said as he was leaving, "There is nothing in this life, there is only Jesus."
Other than dropping Nancy off at Matthew 25, so she could translate, that was our day in Port. We stopped at Clean Water on our way home for it was missionary meeting Sunday and we knew we could fellowship for a few minutes before night fell. Everyone wanted to hear what happened with the kids.
The interesting thing today is that no one knows what the exchange rate is for the US dollar. If fell dramatically when the banks opened, from 8.4 to 7.4 and word has it it's down to 7. The reason is that there are a lot of American dollars coming into the country so the exchange rate went down. It hurts everyone but those in charge of money. When Gary went out with Kevin, they found a guy who gave them 7.5. So, they were shouting victory on the way home.
Getting emails from people who want to get their kids out of the country. Here's one you can pray about:
Hi Carolyn,
Ed Fasnacht from Service International gave me your name and email address.
I am a pastor in Kelso WA. I have been friends with ED and involved in SI missions trips for eight years. I am emailing you because I need some help.
A couple in my church, Paul and Amy Gowan, are in the process of adopting a six year old boy from Haiti. They are now part of a group of parents in similar situation waiting in Ft. Lauderdale, FL to get the word that their child is being put on a plane out of Haiti.
They are working with an adoption agency who has a representative at the airport in Haiti but she is alone and overwhelmed by the political turmoil surrounding getting children out to their adopted parents. The Gowans have been told that today the Haitian President is going to stop the expediting of adoptions. If that happens it may be months or years before they are united with their new son.
Do you have any suggestion?
Do you know anyone that could help the adoption worker at the airport?
We are desperately looking for any help and any ideas. Thank you for anything you can do or anything you can suggest to me to do.
God Bless!
Pastor Jerry
In the meantime we remain servants of the Most High. God bless you for what you are doing for His Kingdom.
Carolyn
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